Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-06-04

Inc RlYerSlue TreSS and HOrttc3tttuTlSt
publishes the following interesting letter
concerning the white scale, which was read
at a recent meeting of theSan Diego Histor-
ical Society:
THE MUSEUM OF WELLINGTON.
New Iealand), March 5, 1887 !
DEAR SIR: | much regret that can give
you no more certain information as to the
original home of the IcoryG purchase than
this: That New Zealand is certainly not
its home, and that Australia probably is
1t came to New Zealand about the year
1877, and first appeared in Auckland upon
a hedge OF prickly or (kangarool acacia, an
Australian plant. When l first saw it there
in 1878. it had almost DESTROYED the hedge
(which was about twenty yards long, and
the insects were clustered in hundreds on
the dying plants. / did not know then as
much as do now about coccids but | adj
vised the owner strongly to burn every
stick of the hedge. He neglected my adj
vice. AT the first visit icerya was on that
hedge alone, as far as / could see. | Wis
tied Auckland again four years afterwards
or So and icerya had then spread over
large area about the city and numbers of
different plants. Since then it has invaded,
with terrible effect, great portion of the
North Island of New Zealand, and the
warmer parts of the South. 1t is now
firmly established, and the supine careless
ness of the people allow it to ravage whole
districts at will. But it is certainly. as the
above shows, not native of New Zealand
/ understand that it appeared at the Cape
of Good Hope some years ago Qong before
it was established in this country, and the
people there called it the Australian bug"
AS the course of traffic is usually from the
Cape to Australia, suppose it must have
been taken there by people going to the
diamond fields from Sydney or Melbourne
In 1850, think, was on visit to Mel
bourne. and took d run for day up to
Ballarat. There l saw on various trees in
garden numbers of coccids, which | be-
lieve to have been immature icerya / was
not in a position at the time to bring away
any specimens, nor even to make more
than the most cursory observation. But if
these were not Iceryd purchase. they were
something very closely allied to it.
On the whole, from the above facts feel
convinced that Australia is the country
which has made to US and to you present
of this remarkably Objectionable pest.
/ am bound to say that have never seen
the iccryG sGcchari of Mauritius alive. |
have received specimens in spirits, and they
do not agree with Iceya purchase But
might there not be two in Mauritius?
If so, the expectation of sugar from that
island TO Australia, to the Cape, to Califor-
MIA and New Zealand, might well account
for IceTya purchase IN all those countries.
| have several times tried to obtain some
information from Nautilus, but with no
effect.
Now, as to natural enemies As far as
our experience goes, IcepG purchase has
none such in this country. The only COG
cids which have found attacked by para
sites here are some lecanids (chiefiy of my
genus tenochiton], one or two diaspids and
a dactylopius Birds do not eat icerya.
and, in fact, we have nothing here to cheek
its increase to my knowledge. Whether
the hymenopterous parasites of tenochiton
will some day attack icerya cannot nov be
said; but everybody will devoutly hope
that they may and soon.
shall have great pleasure in forwarding
to you copy OF the work now in the press
on New Zealand coccids, which will be
out, hope, this month. If it were not
too importunate, | would venture TO ask
you to send me whatever publication of
the same kind you could easily let me
have from California. | remain yours
faithfully, w. N. MAsKELL